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Zhong Shuhe actually went to ask if she could switch brigades, but the response was a polite rejection:
“Sorry, we’re already full here.”
The man added:
“The Qingshan Brigade only has three educated youths this year. If you leave, they’ll really be short-handed.”
Zhong Shuhe frowned slightly, her beautiful face annoyed:
“They have three male educated youths and two female ones. That side is all female—shouldn’t you swap a male youth over?”
The middle-aged man from the other team responded cheerfully:
“I’m fine with swapping one male youth over.”
Hearing that, the three male educated youths standing in front of the tractor immediately looked at Zhong Shuhe like she was their sworn enemy.
Is this girl trying to stir up trouble?
Who wouldn’t want to stay with the wealthier brigade?
In the end, Zhong Shuhe returned in defeat, her expression sulky. She dumped her luggage onto the ox cart and grumbled:
“I’m exhausted. Let’s just get going already.”
The middle-aged man ignored her and turned to the other two girls, formally introducing himself:
“I’m Chen Jianchao, brigade leader of Qingshan. Welcome to our Qingshan Brigade.”
“Right, what are your names?”
Yu Mo softly reported her name. Lin Ting, meanwhile, was lost in her thoughts.
Qingshan Brigade, Northeast… and his surname is Chen…
Could this really be Chen Li’s hometown?
Is fate playing games with me?
Chen Jianchao asked again:
“And you are?”
Lin Ting snapped out of it and quickly answered:
“I’m Lin Ting.”
She noticed a flicker in Chen Jianchao’s expression when he heard her name.
So, Old Master Zhou must’ve already informed him.
Chen Jianchao smiled at her meaningfully and said:
“Alright, we’re all here. Put your things on the ox cart and follow me back to the brigade.”
“Wait—what?”
Zhong Shuhe was stunned. Not only did they not get a ride on the tractor, now they had to walk?
Chen Jianchao explained calmly:
“We only have one ox in the whole brigade. We still need it to plow the fields. If we exhaust it now, how are we supposed to work the land later?”
After hearing this, the three girls fully understood just how poor Qingshan Brigade really was.
Lin Ting had spent days on the train and just wanted to find a bed to sleep on, so she said:
“Then let’s get moving. It’ll be dark soon.”
Chen Jianchao nodded:
“Keep up, alright? Don’t fall behind. Getting lost is one thing, but getting eaten by a black bear is much worse.”
Zhong Shuhe paled.
“You have black bears here?!”
Chen Jianchao replied matter-of-factly:
“Of course. Not just black bears—tigers, wolves, wild boars, roe deer…”
Upon hearing that, the pace of all three girls immediately quickened.
They didn’t know how long they’d been walking when Chen Jianchao pointed ahead:
“Once we go around this mountain, we’ll be there.”
Lin Ting looked up—and her breath caught.
That’s not a mountain…
That’s a whole mountain range, stretching into the horizon.
Now she finally understood the phrase:
“So far the horse dies before reaching the mountain.”
Wasn’t the Northeast supposed to be full of flat plains?!
Her geography clearly needed work…
Zhong Shuhe, on the other hand, looked like a wilted cabbage, barely holding it together.
“I can’t. I need to ride the ox cart.”
Chen Jianchao thought for a moment:
“How about you take turns riding? I’ll call out when it’s time to switch.”
But before he even finished, Zhong Shuhe had already climbed onto the ox cart, not even bothering to complain about how dirty or uncomfortable it was.
Chen Jianchao estimated the distance and eventually said it was time to switch. But Zhong Shuhe refused to come down.
“I’m exhausted!”
“I seriously can’t walk anymore!”
“We’re almost there anyway. Just let the others walk a bit more. It won’t kill them.”
Chen Jianchao glanced at the other two girls. Before he could say anything, Lin Ting stepped forward and yanked Zhong Shuhe off the cart.
Zhong Shuhe, spoiled since childhood, was no match for Lin Ting, who had grown up on a test farm.
“How can you be so rude?!” Zhong Shuhe protested.
Lin Ting’s expression didn’t change:
“You look like you need someone to straighten you out.”
Chen Jianchao was stunned.
This Lin Ting… doesn’t seem to need my protection at all.
She can clearly handle herself—and won’t let anyone walk all over her.
Lin Ting’s face shifted like a summer sky—quickly turning gentle as she turned to Yu Mo, who stood dazed at the side.
“You take the ox cart next.”
Yu Mo was deeply touched.
“Thank you, Sister Ting.”
She climbed aboard without hesitation.
Zhong Shuhe’s face turned red with anger.
“Brigade Leader, she’s bullying me!”
Chen Jianchao looked away and said nothing.
He didn’t see a thing!
The ox cart started moving again. Lin Ting jogged to catch up, and Zhong Shuhe—still fearful of bears and tigers—had no choice but to follow.
They finally reached the Qingshan Brigade. According to Chen Jianchao, the brigade had four production teams, and everyone in the village shared the surname Chen.
Lin Ting sat on the cart and immediately spotted someone she recognized from her previous life—
Xu Zhaoying, Chen Li’s mother, and her future mother-in-law in that life.
Xu Zhaoying had moved to the city shortly after Lin Ting married Chen Li, using some excuse. She had terrible hygiene and a bad relationship with Lin Ting.
But Chen Li was a filial son and refused to send his mother back. Not long after, his father came too.
In the following years, the entire Chen family moved into the city one by one.
Lin Ting refused to live with them, so Chen Li eventually rented a three-bedroom apartment for them.
As the ox cart neared, someone in the village pointed and shouted:
“Hey! That female educated youth on the cart is quite the beauty!”
Xu Zhaoying craned her neck and said:
“Not bad.”
Someone teased her:
“Old Lady Xu, think she’s good enough for your son Chen Li?”
Xu Zhaoying replied, dissatisfied:
“Still a bit lacking.”
“My son is someone who’ll stay in the city. His wife must also have a city job. Some down-country educated youth can’t possibly match him.”
She thought of Li Haitang, that audacious girl who ran all the way into the city just to marry her son.
Xu Zhaoying prayed every day that Li Haitang would drop dead on the road—so Chen Li could call off the engagement and marry someone better.
Soon, the three new educated youths were led to their dormitory.
There were three mudbrick houses—one for the male youths, and two for the females.
In total:
The newcomers were placed in the western room. Lin Ting pushed open the door, and was immediately hit with a musty, moldy smell.
The walls were covered in faded red slogans, and everything looked worn and shabby.
There was only one large communal bed, a heated kang platform.
Opposite the bed stood a wooden cabinet with three shelves—just enough for each of them to store their belongings.
The expressions on the girls’ faces varied.
Zhong Shuhe looked like she was about to cry:
“This isn’t fit for people to live in!”
A seasoned educated youth standing by the door muttered under their breath:
“So what are we, not people?”